Christmas tree allergy?
Categories: Fun & activities, Health & safety, Environment
Yesterday we threw out my parents' Christmas tree. It's after Christmas so not such a big deal, but normally they keep one until New Year's Day. My mother thinks she is allergic to Christmas trees and has basically been sick ever since she and my father brought the one they got this year home.
It may be the most beautiful tree I've ever seen. It's perfect in every way, except for the fact that it seems to have given my mother allergies that caused so many problems she's been through two rounds of antibiotics and a round of steroids with no success. Now she's on yet another regimen and the tree is out with the recycling.
We're not actually sure if it's the tree or the myriad poinsettas she sprinkled throughout the house in preparation for a party she never gave due to her illness. All she knows is that she's never bringing another live tree into the house.
This is fine for many people who always get a fake tree. My father feels quite differently. He thinks that Christmas tree smell, along with the action of picking out the tree, carrying it home, even vacuuming twice a day to get up all the needles, is a big deal and a major part of his holiday enjoyment.
I am not sure how I feel about it. If I had a big enough house I too would probably have afake tree--it's nicer than sacrificing a tree every year and they don't shed. No new tree smell though.
If they don't get a live tree my father doesn't want to do a tree at all. He's also still convinced it's not the tree that caused her allergy. After all, they've had a live tree every year and she's never been sick--especially not like this. My mother's allergist feels differently. He says she should never bring anything live into the house or risk another attack.
I guess my mother is not the only person with this allergy. Her best friend also has one and has had a fake tree for years. Even I started to feel a little itchy as we took down all the ornaments.
I'm not sure what next year will bring. Perhaps there will be a live tree at my parents' house, perhaps not. Most likely not. I'll continue to get live trees for our house until we live somewhere with enough space to store a fake tree. Although, heck, who am I kidding? I like a live tree too.
Do you know anyone with a Christmas tree allergy? What do they do: take a pill or get a fake tree?
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Heather 12-28-2007 @ 9:17AM
Lots of people are allergic to Christmas trees. You can take an over-the-counter allergy medicine like Claritin to combat the symptoms. Start the day before you go tree shopping and stop the day after you throw out the tree.
Also, some Christmas trees can carry a fungus that will aggravate sinuses, even trigger asthma attacks in some people. We always give our tree a good shower and leave it in the garage to dry overnight before we bring it in the house.
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Jill 12-28-2007 @ 9:47AM
Different types of trees will be very different. I can't cope with Frasier Fir, but white pine is ok. Look them up and see what might be the least allergenic.
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heatherfeather 12-28-2007 @ 10:32AM
It could indeed be the species of tree. Blue spruce and Frasier Fir are torturous for me. Researching different trees is a good idea. That being said, however, we tried having real trees for a few years when I was younger. (My dad, sister and I are all allergic) We tried different species of trees, tried blasting them down with a high powered hose to get rid of the fungi and leaving them to dry overnight. The year that we threw out the tree on December 22 was the last year we tried having a real tree. I am so allergic to some pine trees that I was sick in bed for several Christmases and utterly miserable during the holidays. For me, that's not worth the suffering that having a nice Christmas tree smell in the house brings. I am extremely grateful that there are fake trees that are relative facsimiles of real trees, and VERY glad that you can get pre-lit trees and never have to deal with the tangled strings of lights!
Hope your mom feels better!
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l.b. 12-28-2007 @ 10:38AM
I had my first bout of tree allergies this year--I almost couldn't take it! I'm pretty sure we had a Balsam fir, which smells great. Unfortunately, from what I've read, the aromatic trees are also the most allergenic.
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RobMonroe 12-28-2007 @ 10:43AM
We did a real tree this year and won't do it again. It's just not worth the hassle in our lives.
There is something to be said for going out and cutting down your own tree, I agree. It was a tradition in my family for as many years as I can remember. There is something much more important: the people that are involved!
If you want the real tree smell, Yankee Candle makes an incredibly pine-smelling candle!
We have also put a real wreath on the door in the past for that tree-smell. We'll probably go back to that next year.
Wishing your mom health as the tree is on the curb!
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karen 12-28-2007 @ 11:39AM
my family has had a fake tree since i was about 12 because i am horribly allergic to them. i cannot enter a house of someone who has a live tree without breaking out and having an asthma attack. when i mow the lawn in the summer i have to wear long sleeves to protect my arms from when i have to mow close to pine trees along our yard, and i have to wear long pants to protect my legs from the grass, something i am also very allergic to. i cannot remember the last time i walked barefoot on grass because my whole body breaks out if i do. an allergy pill may or may not work for her, i have to take one year round, and sometimes extra in the hayfever/ragweed reason.
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veggiewarrior 12-28-2007 @ 1:27PM
I'm allergic to certain species of trees. One year when I was young my Dad went to a tree lot and asked for cuttings of the different trees. they hung a different branch in my bedroom every night to see if I was allergic. Colorado Spruce (if I remember correctly) is the only one that didn't cause a reaction. So, that's the kind of tree we got every year since. As an adult, we use artificial.
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NickV 12-28-2007 @ 2:13PM
A good friend of mine is allergic to certain types of evergreens. At home, she gets a fake tree. When visiting, she takes a strong dose of Benadryl or something similar. She is currently getting allergy shots which she reports works wonders (I concur with that, as I'm getting allergy shots for non-tree allergies).
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dee 12-28-2007 @ 2:37PM
A lot of people who have hay-fever-type allergies will be allergic to various types of Christmas trees.
I always had problems with the Fraiser firs my parents like to purchase. We had a White Pine last year and I didn't really have any issues, we had an "Eastern" Fir this year (BalasmxFraiser according to the seller) which I've had an on-and-off, low level reaction to.
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Dana 1-04-2008 @ 10:02PM
I have known that I was allergic to Christmas Trees since I was 6, which is now 22 years ago. Each year around the holidays I would come down with a horrible case of Strep Throat. Then eventually I would get my brother sick, and then my mom too. My illness was compounded by the fact that my mom would let me lay sick in the living room and watch movies...about 5 ft from the tree. Then when I slept in my room at night, I was also being exposed since the heater intake was on the same wall as the tree too. My regular doctor was out of town for the holidays so we went to a Chinese doctor who was covering his patients. She is the one who told me that I am allergic to mold spores that occur on the trees. Apparently the mold comes from the trees being cut and then going through varying climate changes. This year I went to a birthday party for my brother on the 21st, he and his new wife had a fresh tree. For the next few days I had blister like bumps in the back of my throat, fortunately it just turned into allergy or cold like symptoms and never got worse. The worst part of this darn allergy is that my birthday is on Christmas Day! :)
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